Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 13 Welcome to Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 13. Twelve weeks of moving our captain’s armband between the home fixtures of Aguero and Salah with the occasional Hazard pick thrown in for good measure, we’ve had it easy. If not for my ill-fated Kane punt in GW8 I’d have a 100% captain success rate, I suspect I’m not alone. Well, I’m afraid such simplicity comes to a shuddering halt in what will undoubtedly be an unlucky for some GW13. With the three aforementioned go-to picks all playing away from home this week, we have a situation where there is no clear favourite. We may have to actually take some risks this week. Shudder. In my opinion, weeks like this are what make this game so compelling; pick the right man and you could make up se...[Read More]
Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 12 Welcome to Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 12. It’s not even midweek yet — you probably haven’t had a chance to clean your bed sheets from last weekend’s action — but, given FPL’s intrinsic infidelity, it’s already high time to recommence the search for your next one-gameweek stand and gently feel thei- ok, I’m sorry, not again. We’ve reached November now; things are getting serious. Shall we discuss a selection of 5 players who’ve performed well recently? What a novel concept. If every FPL manager who read this weighed in afterwards, perhaps the consensus could be visualised via some sort of online poll, revealing the trustworthiest of long-term armband-bearers. Frankly, if the FF247 admin can continually clear up the digital mess that I ...[Read More]
Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 11 Welcome to Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 11. In previous iterations of Fantasy Football Captain Picks, I’ve reached out to the world of social media; dipped into our mailbox; conducted a book review and even rewritten history as a work of fiction. This has led to accusations that I rely on gimmicks to get through these articles in a thinly veiled attempt to disguise my lack of FPL expertise and to add variation in having to write about the same f***ing players every time. Undeniably these are allegations that have hit home rather hard, but it is important to take on board criticism and learn from it. This week’s Captain Picks comes to you in vanilla. Just a packet of ready-salted crisps. A forward defensive prod. A pass back ...[Read More]
Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 10 Welcome to Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 10. Gameweek 9 did not run to the script, did it? So many players brought home one point this weekend I felt like I was getting the same sh*t gift over and over. International-break-favourite Eden Hazard managed just one point – his worst haul all season – to the delight of his three million owners. Teammate Marcos Alonso didn’t get the memo either, also managing just the one point – his worst haul all season – to the delight of his 2.6 million managers. And it wasn’t just the lunchtime kick-off; Callum Wilson, Matt Doherty and Marko Arnautovic re-wrapped Chelsea’s generous present and posted it to us again. In fact, it felt worse than that. They sent their present via a delivery company which pos...[Read More]
Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 8 Welcome to Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 8. Prior to my guest appearance on the FPL Surgery Podcast, I was asked what kind of FPL manager I was; ‘A conservative manager, prone to occasional, irrational moments of reckless abandonment’ was my response. Conversely this probably accurately describes my real life persona, although my fellow contributors who’ve actually met me would say its more like; ‘bloke who witters on a lot and falls asleep at dinner’; no less true. So I’m risk-averse, but on occasion behave a little ‘crazy’. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not one of those people who describe themselves as ‘crazy’ (you’ll find people who say this seldom are), but every now and then I’ll do something that goes against the grain of how I normally...[Read More]
Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 7 Welcome to Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 7. The introduction of continental competitions at this stage of the season always adds an extra film of sweat to the brows of FPL managers when choosing their captain. However, as in the case of Sergio Aguero (6 points) and Eden Hazard (3), an absence from starting team duties midweek can serve as a comforting hand on the shoulder, increasing their chances of selection at the weekend and emboldening that armband choice further. So it was somewhat surprising to see Sergio “I’m the fittest I’ve been in years” Aguero hauled off on the hour mark at Cardiff and Hazard turning in, by his own stratospheric standards, a lacklustre display at West Ham. Mo Salah (8) returned to scori...[Read More]
Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 6 Welcome to Captain Picks Gameweek 6! Man City versus Cardiff; Liverpool at home to Southampton. I couldn’t believe my luck. The captain’s article would write itself. I’d barely need to pick up my pen. All I’d need to do was follow the basic rules of journalism: make it early. Make it short. And if you have to, make it up. However, when I rashly accepted the lucrative offer of writing articles for the site, I didn’t know I would be stepping into a wilderness of mirrors. European football is now with us. Rotation is certain to feature. Injuries will happen. So I came to realise that being offered week 6 was a test of my prophetic powers. Pass it and the gates open to further riches and prestige. Completely bodge it and the gates will be closed, for e...[Read More]
Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 5 Welcome to Captain Picks Gameweek 5! Proper football cannot come back soon enough. Fantasy football Twitter has dried up to the point that people are now analysing the difference Liverpool’s new specialist throw-in coach has had on the players’ throws. Apparently Andy Robertson can now throw to 69% more of the field than he could before. Some things are better left unanalysed. If there is anything worse than an international friendlies break, it is an international break where the ‘friendlies’ are dressed up as competitive matches. At least with friendlies I did not care when England lost, but this new league left me somewhat disappointed on Saturday night when Spain walked away victorious. Bring back friendlies, I say. That way the English could h...[Read More]
Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 4 Welcome to Captain Picks Gameweek 4! It’s already Tuesday evening or beyond. GW3 has drifted by and, unless Mitrovic was in your team, it probably left you feeling slightly… flat. There’s now an air of routine to proceedings. Reality even — many gameweek scores dropping below 50 and flurries of 4-point hits have begun to set in; talk of Wildcarding has already surfaced on the FF247 boards and hollered above the gunshots in a certain Colombian neighbourhood. Transfers aside, there’s an ever-present ingredient in almost every recipe for tear-free gameweek success, exemplified by Salah-vs-Agüero debates and their GW2 returns: the captaincy. After a Friday night of drinking and aimless FPL deliberation, you can only pick one player to take back h...[Read More]
Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 3 Welcome to Captain Picks Gameweek 3! Well the past weekend was split between those that capped Aguero and those that did not, which one were you? Depending on what you did, you either had a great Sunday and weekend, or you were crying into your pint cursing that last-minute swap from the Argentine to a certain Egyptian. The top three choices for the armband were Salah, Aguero and Kane and none of them disappointed scoring 9, 20 and 7 points, respectively. Salah grabbed a couple of assists, Aguero grabbed his 9th PL hattrick and Kane did the impossible by scoring in August! Can they all perform again this weekend or will someone else be the top captain choice? This coming weekend sees some of the bigger teams play relatively weaker sides and gives u...[Read More]
Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 2 Here we are, already diving into Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 2. Gameweek 1’s high flyers comprised the usual medley of routine regulars and ragtag randoms we’ve come to expect from the dawning weekend of an FPL season. Thousands took to the streets for Mo Salah’s 8 points; hundreds danced in the aisles to the tune of Jamie Vardy’s late Old Trafford cameo; while one hungover bloke from Swindon raised a refilled glass of mulled wine to his previous night’s drunken captain punt on Watford’s Roberto Pereyra. Disappointments for many included Harry Kane’s continued August allergy and Sergio Aguero’s unwillingness to find an unmarked Kevin De Bruyne with a square pass. In summary, GW1 belonged t...[Read More]
Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 1 Finally, GW1 one is upon us and brings with it fresh hope for each and every one of us with new teams, new players and a renewed sense of belief. Anticipation, excitement, everybody’s happy, well everybody aside Jose Mourinho, but he’s never happy so don’t let him bring you down. Picking a successful GW1 squad is a lottery at the best of times, throw in a World Cup and we have so many variables to consider, it’s enough to make even the most astute FPL manager lose their damn mind. You can study every pre-season game, fry your brain with endless stats and you’ll still be kicking yourself for ignoring at least one player ‘who you had’ in at least one of your 1001 pre-season drafts, sadly, that’s just how it is. So what can save you from instant FPL-i...[Read More]